Regency
by Good Evening
Summary: Haruka, Kaname, and an Anonymous character travel the world Pre-Rido Incident. Kurancentricity involving, but not limited to, Haruka and Kaname. Yaoi/yuri, and somewhat subtle het, though no specific scenes for the latter. Canon-ness invisible in Ch. 3.
1. India I

Kaname looked up at the thousands of stars, not feeling small in the least beneath the weight of their celestial gaze

Kaname looked up at the thousands of stars, not feeling small in the least beneath the weight of their celestial gaze. The Thar Desert was not kind on summer days, and their human servants had become very weary, walking alongside elephants with shrine-like tents perched on top, heavy drapes concealing the worldly vampires inside. Superstitious by nature, the local folk mainly stayed away from the abnormally beautiful foreign men. Much to Aurèle's chagrin.

As the little pureblood looked up from under mosquito netting, his father, Aurèle, and a few young women who had fallen under their spell drank to their heart's content the ultra-strong liqueur Haruka had brought all the way from Europe. The dominantly British travelling agencies and economy provided many loopholes and exceptions to contraband when it came to wealthy, English-speaking travellers. Kaname was less than impressed by the local maidens, and immediately drew away from their brash Braj dialects. Going on a century old, Kaname already spoke fluent Hindi, and knew many other languages including English, Japanese, of course, German, Latin and most of the languages derived from it, Ukrainian, Croatian, Dutch, Welsh-one that was particularly difficult, Romanian, and _Polski_, which was fun to swear in because Mother hadn't yet learned it.

"What is Britain like?! It must be wonderful-especially with young men like you running around!" The girls giggled. They had to be no older than eighteen, Kaname reasoned as he kept as much of a distance as possible. But he smirked at their use of words. '_Young_' was an overused joke in the vampire world, and one that Haruka and Aurèle never seemed to tire of.

"Oh, well," Haruka began drunkenly, having consumed at least three bottles of the hardest in his stash with only Aurèle to assist him. Their eyes sparkled with the same words, and they turned to the girls with the same tongues and

"It's absolutely fascinating!" And how they _laughed_. Both men fell over giggling, leaning into each other and wiping tears from their eyes as they urged the girls to drink as much as they pleased. It wasn't always easier to drink from a drunk, and the blood was thin and tasteless, but it was liquid and the desert yielded next to nothing.

"I do believe we're completely pissed, my darlings." Haruka stated airily, almost tipping a jug of alcohol as he rolled over to look at them. They giggled and eyed him suggestively, the brunette returning the look as he grabbed the hand of the girl in the green purdah and lightly kissed it. Aurèle did the same to the girl in the orange, and ended up toppling over her as he took off her clothes. The two women laughed in all sense of the word 'silliness', and wrapped their arms around the men atop them.

Unwilling to step outside and into the dusty Hell his father seemed to love, Kaname resolved simply not look while the women gasped as fangs entered their bodies. The vampires sucked them dry and left their wide-eyed, bared bodies to their trusted, imported servants. The underlings wordlessly removed the still warm bodies and took them out into the desert to be buried in a marked grave. Haruka, in all of his ageless, Godless pride, still believed in those stories he'd been told as a child, and still believed that all beings deserved a peaceful passage into Paradise. But what was paradise to a vampire? Over the years, Kaname had taken his father's superstitions to be the compassion for humankind his parents shared. In all of the years he'd seen of humans, he still didn't quite understand his parents' feelings for them, but figured that one day, he'd meet one that made it all make sense. Aurèle was an obvious exception, being an ex-human and, to be honest, not incredibly humane, himself.

When he thought it had grown quiet enough that the two men had fallen asleep, Kaname turned around and stepped over the urns of mysterious liquids-both local and imported-and tried to manoeuvre his way to his bed. A gasp in the darkness stopped his little feet from moving. Father?

"_Aurèle,_" Whispered the darkness to the little pureblood, and Kaname watched from behind a mound of pillows and their day-drapes as Haruka quivered beneath the body of the darker-haired male. They had removed their shirts when the maidens had been there, but now their trousers were gone as well. The air held the heavy scents of sweat and the blood that surely curdled in their stomachs as it floated in the alcohol.

Now, Kaname had learned long ago in a visit to the French Court that all sorts of relationships could happen between those in the aristocracy and… those of more scandalous beginnings. He had even witnessed a few rendezvous in palace halls and masquerades where chuckling couples thought they were alone. But he had seen it. And he had also known of the relationship between his father and Aurèle. He had just… never put two and two together. Or, in this case, Tab A into Slot B. It was a rather rewarding experience, but naturally revolted him as he saw his proud, strong father whither under the touch of a Level D. Not only that, but it was _Brother_. He had long since stopped using the more intimate title when thinking of the man, having learned his real name at just a young age. But Haruka sighed sharply and murmured many things at once under his stuttering breath, in a jargon of languages Kaname knew and some he did not.

"_Aurèle, _please." Whispered the oldest, shuddering as Aurèle gathered himself and pressed the weight of his sex between the crying man's legs. Crying, yes. Kaname smelled the saltiness of tears pearling on his father's cheeks. Haruka gripped Aurèle's back roughly, drawing from him the thinned but wondrous blood both he and his son had fed from at one time or another. _Acacia_, in a glorious bloom. Like the flower in the desert gardens in the African mansion. Something stirred inside Kaname's small belly as he remembered Aurèle's sombre face and the desolate, lonely look he reserved for the blossoms his human friends lovingly tended to.

He grunted and Kaname heard the soft _slap, slap, slap_ of flesh against flesh as the man plunged deeper into his father at a relaxed lovers' pace. Haruka's nails ground the skin on his back and drew more blood. Kaname thought to go over and lap from a few of the cuts when both men fell asleep, though he knew, even drunk, his father would be far too protective a light-sleeper to miss the sobering experience of his son drinking from his lover.

Haruka's breaths came in slurred chants, in tune to the slaps and surges Aurèle set against him. He writhed beneath, cut, and bruised the man, knees clamping relentlessly to constantly gyrating hips. The wet sounds became quicker, and Aurèle dove for Haruka's neck, neither nipping nor drinking as he adorned the glowing paleness of the reserved throat with dozens of light kisses. _Tender and delicate, even when drunk,_ Kaname mused bitterly.

"_I'm not, I can't-_" Breathed Aurèle as his pace quickened to a harsh rhythm that set even the younger Kuran's veins afire as he tried desperately to prolong the final ecstasy.

"_Please, Aurèle, please; more._" Haruka whined lustily. Aurèle then shuddered with a last groan and ejaculated inside of his male lover. Haruka pulled the man down so oilless black hair sprawled on his sweat-sheathed chest. His knees tightened their grip as the ex human tugged his sopping erection, bringing him to a quick but sating climax. They both gasped for air, each holding the other as if they would drift away if they were to let go. Haruka twined the thick black spirals of hair round his fingers, suffocating beneath the sweet weight of his lover. He tilted his head back, slumped on a pile of pillows with stars as witness to his passion. And, incidentally, a vampiric six year-old. Although he wasn't yet sober enough to care-and wouldn't be for several more hours-Haruka was well-aware of his son's presence and audience to their rather dirty show.

But Aurèle's breathing was slow and rhythmical on his chest, sweat quickly evaporating in the desert night. Haruka, in the mean time, reflected on his callous treatment of _the local fare_, and thought to force his personal attendants never to tell his wife of the misadventure. He trusted them fine; fine enough to also conceal entire cellars of alcohol beneath Juuri's feet and all around the world. He truly loved cellars, irony of the cool darkness aside.

Kaname watched his father as he relaxed into the afterglow. His eyes were closed, but the boy knew he was awake. His next actions proved that fact.

"Kaname, please come here." Unabashed at the nakedness of both him and his lover as he called to his son, Haruka surveyed impishly as his voyeur of a son exited from a nearby hill of fabric. The boy walked haltingly to his father, who had turned up his head with tired eyes to urge his child come closer.

"You already knew, didn't you?" Haruka asked, getting right to the point. Kaname answered him without elaboration,

"Yes, Father." Haruka smiled wryly, a sting of pride coming with his son's observant nature.

"And you know not to tell anyone who doesn't know?"

"Yes, Father." Haruka looked down at where his son's eyes were cast; Aurèle's sleeping face. His smile grew soft and nostalgic, and he brushed aside a lock of deep inky hair as gently as if the man were made of ice.

"…Don't tell him you know, either." Haruka stated dreamily, staring at the peaceful, spent figure draped across his bare body.

"Yes, Father." Simply stating his obedient agreement throughout the entire conversation, Kaname's eyes never left Aurèle's strange, tired face. It looked pale in the moon and starlight, but was a deep contrast when splayed across the milky white of Kaname's own father's skin. It was whiter than his own, even if Haruka had taken dares during the trip to step out into the unyielding, eternal glare of the Indian sun. But when Kaname did look over at his father, he saw the most wondrous thing: peace. A thing that had almost never blessed the constantly moving man's face. He saw the look his mother got when she thought she was alone and rubbed the tiny curve on her belly. He saw the exhaustion of endless life and the faded turmoil etched superficially into glowing skin. His father looked like he belonged in the books next to all of the great gods and goddesses of the universe; like a holy lady holding the head of a human male in her lap, watching him sleep with the eyes of both a young mother and a protective lover. His father was heavenly, and Aurèle was his earthly tether.

"You know his name, right?" Haruka asked in a quiet, smooth voice. It was unlike the rough gasps and sated groans he had given earlier.

"Yes." Haruka grew silent, stroking black hair automatically as Aurèle seemed to curl onto him, hooking their legs together and resting with a childlike appearance that struck Kaname as very odd, considering his age.

"… Don't tell him that, either."

"Yes, Father." And with that, Haruka shooed him back to his cot and drew a thin sheet over his and his lover's bodies, snuggling under it with the black hair of a sleeping panther winding with his own rugged brown lion's mane.

Their natural clocks were tweaked by the travel schedule, and Kaname found it almost exciting to be like a human and be awake and alert during the day. They found no shortage of food, unlike the many other travellers that often starved and grew thirsty under watch of the sun. But even the thick drapes layered in white to keep away the heat could not stop the air of the day from sneaking through the seams. To Kaname, it was all terribly electrifying, and a moving switch from his nightlife habits. To Haruka, it was a bitter reminder of what he had removed from this sweltering but wonderful world. And for Aurèle, well, it was certainly something he had missed, but he had more than enough to sate him for years to come, now, didn't he?


	2. China I

The audience has spoken! Kuranccentricity _shall_ be present in this story. I am sorry that the OC disturbs some, but he is a main element for the time being. Until he's away on extended business or dead, he will be a bit of a centre-part in the story :( I hope this factor will not make the story less pleasant. But, c'mon; sexycest! Kurancest _coming_ up! :D Se Grand!

* * *

Haruka gently brushed a lock of hair from Kaname's face, bouncing the vampiric three year-old playfully in his lap. Cracks in the wood of the boat showed them pieces of a golden sunset.

"Father, how long until we reach Xiangshan?" Kaname wasn't yet old enough to hunt, but the hypnotised humans with which his father provided him were a necessity to his vampiric growth.

"Two days or more. In and hour or so, it'll be twilight. We'll have the men dock in then, okay?" Kaname nodded and snuggled into the man's hold, staring at his deep green chángshān. He closed his eyes and hugged the well-tailored fabric, taking in the strong scent of the fir chest in which they had been packed. He longed for the trees and flowers back in Europe. An exodus had been performed due to the scare of the plague, and they had begrudgingly left their beautiful estate for their claim in Rennes. It was smaller, and Haruka found the French décor tacky and overdone, but they had to keep up the illusion of humanity, even if their systems did not permit such disgusting viruses.

Aurèle stirred in his bed, not asleep, but resting his eyes from the reading he'd been doing. Lately, he'd been going through all the papers concerning foreign land ownership. The Kuran holdings were immense, and he'd been at it for months, but had been able to verify most of them with the newly elected house of James I. He was down to his last few minor countries, and then he could finally relax.

"… Aurèle, did we buy the apartment in Montmarte?" Aurèle looked up sleepily and groaned, sitting up from his kicked-up bedding. Adjusting his reading glasses, he yawned and spoke,

"I don't believe we did. We got the seaside one in Montpellier, though. The one with the limestone steps?" Haruka nodded and smiled as his friend stretched like a cat after a nap.

"Thank you, friend. For doing all this, you should be given a saintly title." Aurèle snorted and clamped his hands on his knees, watching Kaname as he dozed in his father's arms.

"Yes, well, given _your_ duties, you've reached 'God' by now." Haruka smirked and looked down at his son as he heard Aurèle's slippers hit the splintery wood. The man walked over and stood in front of them, gazing down at the relaxed males with bloodshot eyes and terrible crows' feet. Haruka stared up at him a moment later with a small smile,

"If that's the case, then how about I bless you, _St. Aurèle_?" Aurèle smirked coyly and leaned down to touch the man's lips softly. Haruka closed his eyes and relished the small touch. Kaname draped across his lap, he gently removed his hands from the boy's sides and held Aurèle's head, the other man's hands supporting him by the wooden hull of the boat. When the kiss deepened a bit too much to comfortably stop, Aurèle drew away and licked his lips, leaving a bewildered Haruka, a thin spidery wire connecting them for a second until the blue-eyed man wiped it from his face. At Haruka's questioning look, he pointed down at the slowly blinking Kaname as the boy roused from his short rest.

"Is it twilight, yet?" he asked with growing energy and curiosity. Aurèle instantly read the older brunette's expression: _Damn!_ He chortled good-naturedly and removed a lock of hair that shielded him from the sight of his friend's face.

"Well past. Should we order them to stop?" He asked with laughter in his eyes. Haruka pouted comically and picked up the small body in his lap, standing and walking up the stairs to the main deck. He yelled out commands and the boat almost instantly headed for the nearest pinpoint of light. He set down the little boy as soon as they docked, shooting a predatory look at the ex human walking behind him. _You are _not_ going to see the night without me again_. And true, they hadn't gotten a moment to themselves over the two (going on three) month trip, but Kaname had been entertainment enough to occupy the moments when they _didn't_ have anything to do. And space on a ship was sparse; even for aristocrats.

"When do we meet Asu? I want to see his orchid gardens again. Does he still have the palace on Hokkaido?" Kaname bombarded them with questions as they approached the streets of the city in plainclothes borrowed from their men.

"Asu isn't going to see us this trip, Kaname. He's in Nasser with Saba." Haruka stated blankly, looking into the dwindling crowds of the dusky streets. Aurèle had already gone to a tavern for a few drinks, leaving son to father and father to son. Kaname looked up excitedly at his father,

"Are they visiting Beset-mama at the lake?" Haruka didn't face his cheery son while they walked, a mortal chill tweaking his spine as he remembered the black-haired woman and her painted green eyes.

"... Kaname, do you remember Beset's husband, Amon?" He asked quietly, finding a girl washing clothing in an alley. Kaname nodded and watched as his father snapped his fingers, gaining the girl's attention. She took one look at him and tried to run away: superstition was rampant in villages like this, after all.

"Amon was killed in Cairo by a mob." He snapped his fingers again, and the girl stopped, looking up at them with black, deadened eyes.

"Beset is safe, but Asu and Saba are protecting her at the villa, for the time being." He loosened her scarf and collar and took out a strange-looking pin, shoving it deep into the side of her throat. Drops quickly collected on the end of it, and Kaname opened his mouth. The process of drinking from a human as a moral pureblood was difficult. Haruka could always drink from Aurèle, but he was not meant for Kaname, and definitely couldn't support two healthy appetites-one growing all the time-at once.

"We found out she's with child. Twins, she thinks." He removed the needle when Kaname was done and focused on both healing the wound and blanking her mind. They left the alley and he snapped his fingers a final time, waking her from her trance and grimacing as she stumbled with anaemia: human and pitied upon.

"What do you think she's going to name them?" Kaname asked with a full belly and a smile on his face. He twined his small fingers with his father's as the man walked slowly enough to match his pace.

"I'm not sure. Maybe something Christian-she's turned a blind eye to the culture all these years, but I think she's finally going to come off her pedestal." He said distractedly, sniffing out Aurèle while Kaname processed the words.

"… How old is Beset-mama?" Haruka swore under his breath as he shuffled through a rough tavern crowd to walk the man back to the boat.

"Do you remember those stories she used to tell you about Nut and Nu and the creation of the earth?" Kaname smiled,

"Is Beset-mama Nu?!" He said excitedly, large brownish eyes sparkling with enthrallment. Haruka had no choice but to smile at his son's excitement as he finally found his friend.

"No, she's more like Sekhmet-but she helped make those stories, Kaname. You should ask her about it when we see her next." He spoke briefly with Aurèle and then worked his way back through the crowds-friend and son in tow. When they made it to the boat, they were already grumbling about crowds, and sought simply to enjoy the night air on deck as they set off again. Lounging was more fun when you had stars and water to watch, along with good company to talk to.

"If Beset-mama has a girl, she should name her Ranim. Remember? Like the girl who played with me in the fig orchard. Maybe she'll grow to be as nice." Haruka smiled at his son's musings, curled up in Aurèle's arms as Kaname rattled on about how good Ranim had been at draughts, and how he was indebted to her for always paying attention to him and helping him around the town while Haruka had been working and having 'adult talks'. Kaname did not remember much about Beset beyond her doting of him. He had been very small the last time they'd met, and just a few trips earlier, he wouldn't have remembered at all. But Beset was like Sekhmet in almost every sense. She was strong and ruthless and followed only the orders of the Gods by whom she lived, even in this modern age.

Haruka screwed up his brow and frowned at the sky, Aurèle hugging him tighter as he sensed the pureblood's angst. Beset had denied His and Juuri's plan to bring together both humans and vampires. She argued that the food chain was predominant in these manners, and that man had no respect for the meat _they_ ate. Which was true, but nevertheless, the Kuran couple had pleaded with her for several years after this point had been made. Beset had placed vampires above all beings but those celestial, and obeyed strictly the laws of the text she read, even when the lives of her own were at stake. But her adamant, warrior's nature was admirable, though not very fun to argue with.

"Is The Lord Haruka thinking of his work, or other matters?" Aurèle said, playfully nipping the man's ear while jolting him from his thoughts. Haruka smiled dangerously, grabbing the ex human's collar and leaning in to ravage his lips in release from his sexual frustration. He hadn't had a romp-let alone a _good_ romp- in weeks. But Aurèle stopped him again, and he growled,

"_What is it __**this**__ time_?" Aurèle smiled guiltily and pointed at the staring Kaname.

"OOMF!!" Haruka slung the man over his shoulder.

"Kaname!" He barked and the boy jumped, "You are not to enter the hull under any circumstances until we leave. Understand?" The little brunette nodded quickly, barely holding back his laughter as Aurèle's bright red face spluttered out protests, his father not listening to any of them. They disappeared behind the door, Haruka slamming it so hard the hinges cracked a little, providing just enough of a crevice to sneak a tiny arm through and unlock it. Which is what Kaname did, once he heard the two men arguing as a body hit the mattress. He stepped inside silently and quickly, hastily locking the door again before sneaking behind a few barrels on the landing before the shallow steps ended.

"You can't just do that in front of the crew-let alone your own _son_!" Shouted the ex human as Haruka furiously stripped him of his robes and sheath. When the brunette reached the man's pants, He stripped himself completely and moved to yank down the obstruction, only meeting a fierce set of claws and a

"Fucking **listen** to me, you goddamned beast!" Haruka felt at the blood on his cheeks, watching with disbelief the man who had yielded it from him. He looked into blue eyes, trembling with rage and '_that_' kind of frustration, but with no way to act out as he solemnly obeyed the shaking man before him. Aurèle appeared horrified with his actions and the patient, tortured pureblood staring obediently back at him.

"Aurèle," Haruka pleaded as his fingers ghosted over the younger man's hip. The black-haired man didn't respond for the longest time, finally relenting with a sigh and pulling down his pants while his partner squealed with glee.

"Alright, but _prepare yourself_ for once: I'm positively covered in ink." Haruka squealed again and clapped his hands childishly, hastily removing the oil he'd saved in his pockets for the duration of the trip and drizzling some on both his fingers and their erections, savouring the scent of blossoms as he rubbed harshly against his lover.

"Easy," Aurèle ground through clenched teeth. That was sensitive skin, Haruka was grating.

"I know, I know," Haruka sighed nonchalantly as he inserted a finger, sliding in to one knuckle, then two,

"**No, you don't**." Reinforced the submissive top as his aggressive bottom ground the skin from his erection. He couldn't imagine what this would be like dry; even _with_ oil, it was painful to have someone so incredibly immune pound upon you like a grindstone. Which was exactly what he would do to the man, once he was done preparing himself. Two-no, three-fingers now. And, while it was sexy to watch the man work up to a fist, Aurèle was rather 'in need of ass'istance at the moment. He pulled Haruka's fingers away and the older man sighed sharply, feeling the heat of his lover's sex pour slowly into him.

"Fast or slow? Get it out and we can get on fine, already!"

"I'll go at whatever pace I please, you domineering nit!" Haruka crossed his arms as he eased onto the pulsating erection, feeling the heartbeats pound within him, even before he buried the man to the hilt.

"Well excuse me for trying to bring a little order into sex instead of this confusing mess you call lovemaking."

"_I_ made a mess?! You threw me down and tried to rape me, you son of a rotting cow! _That's_ what you call _order_?!" It came to the point where they actually _were_ fucking-arguing at the same time. Kaname held back a laugh by biting his lip, watching as the men bickered like an old married couple while he just made out the column of Aurèle's penis sliding in and out of his father's pale entrance.

"Oh, just shut up and enjoy it, you goddamned pansy," Haruka grumbled with finality, flinching in surprise as Aurèle flipped him on his back and sank in as deeply as he could.

"Don't mind if I do." Haruka laid back and groaned and Kaname surveyed the other man's hand flick teasingly over his erection. Haruka swatted it away with a growl and Aurèle smiled when his partner jerked it to life with his own fingers. Holding both legs up quite high, the black-haired male scooted forward a little further, relishing Haruka's throaty moan as he thrust deep and gentle, relaxing into a much less hectic pace. Something stirred in Kaname's little belly when he saw his father stretch out and toss his head around. The feeling spread when the man begrudgingly surrendered his lips to his top, wet smacking sounds joining their oiled movements as both grew just ever-so slightly quicker.

"Hurry up before I bite your tongue off." Haruka stated with a flushed face and half-lidded eyes. Aurèle pouted and complied, pounding into the man in all sense of the word, _harsh_. Haruka positively _mewled_, thrashing about before finally landing his hands on stable shoulders. Aurèle grinned and kissed the man's forehead, working his way to a sensitive ear. He slid in full and drew out about halfway, never leaving the slick cavern of Kaname's father. Said father whined profoundly, wiggling his hips in protest as his partner purposely missed the bundle of nerves he knew so well.

"Are you finished yet?" Aurèle asked lightly as he just ghosted over Haruka's weeping erection. The man hissed and his thighs clamped around pale sides. Aurèle laughed a bit, thrusting at a quick pace until he was finished, and just rode out his release, Haruka tightening his lips as the thick liquid spread inside of him. Panting but still capable, the blue-eyed male reached down and brought his partner to a quick climax, the seed spreading over their bellies as the pleasured one let out a last, deep moan.

Kaname quietly crept out as they wrestled in the sheets for a moment, fluid still leaking from Haruka's tender and slightly torn hole. It healed quickly enough, but Kaname caught one last wince from his father as he left the room, stepping out onto the deck and not forgetting to lock the door before walking over to the side of the boat to look into the water. He heard their quiet conversation, and knew that some of the men had caught snippets of their passion.

"Did we not use enough oil?"

"It's fine, just a little raw. There are always going to be casualties with sex." Silence, then,

"Are you sure you're going to be alright?" A question, then a snappy scoff

"I'm not a weakling. What, are you going to carry me up the steps and lay me on the divan once we're up?" and more silence. Then the rustling of clothing, a yelp, heavy steps, and the door clicked and opened. Haruka had his arms crossed and a bad look on his face as Aurèle carried him like a princess to the lounger. He set down the slightly rumpled diplomat and scooted up next to him in a wooden chair, a tired smile on his face. Kaname laughed openly and Haruka glared at his friend.

"What? You asked for it." Haruka looked away from him and stared instead at his son. Kaname turned quickly and looked at the fish. Of course Haruka knew. His hearing was impeccable. But he let it rest, still not wishing his friend to know of his son's voyeuristic habits when it came to their lovemaking. Sickening, but Kaname was a curious, growing boy. All quite common in the vampiric world.

"Sir! The boy asked when we'd reach Xiangshan?" Hollered one of the sailors to get his employer's attention.

"Yes?" Haruka said without looking back at the man. Nevertheless, the sailor smiled and called back,

"We should be there by tomorrow, without stops." Kaname smiled excitedly and jumped up and down. Haruka nudged the man sitting next to him, and Aurèle pouted as he went back under got down to the very last sheets of his work. Haruka stretched out smugly, not having cleansed his body as his son took in the scents of sweat and ejaculate. Business as usual.

Egypt, next. Look up that bitch, Sekhmet on wiki :D


	3. Egypt I

"Beset-mama!" Kaname squealed as he wrenched his little body from his mother's grasp. Beset laughed and opened her arms wide in acceptance of the child.

"_Assalamu alaikum_, little Kuran!" Kaname hugged her as hard as she could and the woman drew him up in the air, dangling him above their heads like a constellation. Beset was quite tall: taller than Juuri and Haruka by far. Her cordlike black hair was drawn up in dreadlocks, held in by a golden cobra circlet.

"Sa'ida, friends. I take it you've come for more than vacation again?" Her eyebrow cocked, she tossed Kaname in the air a final time before placing him on the floor and telling him to have the servants get some drinks. He nodded quickly and ran at full speed on his little legs from the entranceway. Beset turned her foggy green eyes to the couple standing before her, and welcomed them with a formal bow into her home.

* * *

"Ranim!! Ranim!! Are you here?!" After telling the servants in the kitchen to bring refreshments, Kaname ran as fast as his little legs could carry him to the befamed fig orchard.

"Ranim!!" He ran around all the trunks in the immediate field, looking desperately for his friend, sniffing her out by the blood Beset had ordered the Qatir to give. To explain, the Qatir are Arilite: artificially created beings. Arilite can be anything from short-lived shadows to long-term slaves. They can take the form of anything at all, be it physical or mental, and often handled matters of well-being such as protection. But the Qatir were very special. For they were beings only Beset knew how to conjure, beings said to have been devised by Isis and the King of Gods, himself. Qatir had blood like a drug. Dark, potent, and very aromatic. It was meant for pleasure and _**only**_ pleasure: Qatir blood had absolutely no nourishment. Beings made from clay and figs, they served only as dolled-up perfumelike drinks for a bored continental, enjoyed thoroughly every time. Particularly because it's takers fucked like rabbits for hours after drinking.

At last, he found the heavily tanned woman sleeping beneath the leaves. The first time Kaname had come, Ranim had been only a little taller than him: plump and dark with the Nasserian sun. The pureblood had thought her to have been about seven or eight then. The second trip Kaname remembered, he recalled specifically hearing Beset say she was sixteen. He thought her almost twenty-five, now.

"Ranim, Ranim!! Wake up, my friend!" Kaname had not spoken Arabic in a very long time, but he knew the dark-eyed woman would understand.

"A moment longer, Friend-my eyes are tired." Kaname shook her violently, smiling broadly as the woman's eyes snapped open. She looked around for one of the servants, but found instead a small pale boy. She rubbed her eyes ferociously, and blinked for a moment,

"Kuran-child? Master Kaname? Is that you?" A slow smile spread like butter on her face as Kaname nodded enthusiastically. Ranim threw her arms around the child and muttered words of welcome with such speed, Kaname's ears could not keep up with her tongue.

"I thought I wouldn't see you until my dying day! Why, you've become so handsome, child!" Kaname frowned as Ranim kept calling him 'child', and scrunched his face up as he swatted away a hand petting his curly brown locks.

"I'm not a child, Ranim. I'm older than you are." Ranim's smile froze on her face, but then she hugged Kaname again with renewed vigour, stroking his back gently and laughing into his shoulder,

"Of course you are: I'm so sorry to have forgotten, Master Kaname!" She wiped her tired eyes and Kaname finally found the exhaustion that had led the once-hyper little girl to sleeping in her favourite romping grounds. Beset must have worked her have to death. Skin dark by much sun; leathery hands and horrible crows' feet; scars crisscrossed her hands from the knives of the kitchen and old punishments, eyes heavy and leaden from the things she'd seen and secrets told to her. Ranim was older, and it showed a little too much.

"What is wrong, Master Kaname?" She asked curiously at the light frown on her friend's face. Kaname reached out and took Ranim's hair from its ponytail, letting it shuffle out thickly. Running his hands through it with disgust, he advised the woman,

"You should have the cook cut your hair-it's too long." Ranim looked shocked for a minute, then smiled warmly as she reached for her hair tie, putting the locks back in perfect place.

"I promised I wouldn't." She pulled one of Kaname's perfect childish curls from his face and brushed it behind the boy's ear, smiling gently as a mother with her child. Kaname looked up at her perplexedly.

* * *

Beset shook her head resignedly, "You do not understand, friends; we are not like humans. Humans can live without flesh. This is unreasonable. If this is all you have to say to me, you might as well leave." Haruka clenched his fists in his lap, but Juuri gave him a concentrated look, turning away and reaching for one of the silver cups on the table.

"Beset, we believe there is a possibility: something that can sate us other than human blood," A tired, irritated look, and a scoff,

"What? And feed off rats and cattle?! Don't tell me you've considered these things." Juuri gave nothing but a blank look, and Beset laughed bitterly,

"The Great Kuran House-Lords over us all-has weakened so much?! Has it really come to this? These pitiful," A glare and a terse, clipped tone,

"Beset, watch your tongue. We're suggesting peace, not degradation," Haruka ordered gently of his friend. The walls swayed with her lack of humour, black strands flowing with an unearthly breeze that whispered and carried between the pillars and dust. It sounded as if a beast had stirred in its sleep. A golden chain clinked around her wrist warningly as Beset stood and looked down upon the unthreatened couple with disdain and… pity.

"Friends, I held your _grandparents_ when they were only babes. I stood by while your ancestors commanded armies _against_ those you try now to protect. I will hear nothing of useless weakness. And, while I hold no grudge against your ideas, I can't say I'm that pleased to have you in my home. For the sake of your son, I will allow you to stay, but we will have no more of these 'discussions'. I'm sure Amon would love to hear all of this, though." The last bit was grumbled lowly, but Juuri couldn't help smiling just slightly as she remembered the gentle husband opposite the raucous, hardhearted woman before her. She stood and quietly thanked Beset for her time, ending formality with a hug and asking her about her most recent 'shipments'. To which the green-eyed woman smiled brightly,

"Ah! Fresh from the flowers of India, Lady! Nothing but the best I can get, thanks to Saba and her poppy gardens!" The two women laughed and left the grinning Haruka, Beset towering more than a foot over her excited and younger friend. He estimated her to be at least 6' 4". When they left sight, Haruka sighed and looked out onto the balcony. He heard his son talking, and walked to the edge of the stone platform to see if he could find him.

Met with the sweet, spicy scent of fig trees, Haruka grinned and sighed, forgetting his task for a moment as he allowed the scent to envelope him. These trees were much older than his son, even older than the palace they stood beside. The lake wasn't too far off, vast and sparkling blue with star and moonlight.

"… She's wonderful, Master Kaname." Said a dreamy voice. It sounded like a lovesick girl, and Haruka listened attentively, eyes still closed to the pearly Nasserian moon.

"What is she like? Does she have green eyes like Beset-mama? Is she as tall? Is her hair brown or black or-" Kaname was cut off with a gentle laugh and a hand brushed his face adoringly,

"One question at a time, Master Kaname." The boy frowned and removed her hand, crossing his arms and his father smirked in silence above them, ready to laugh at his son's stubborn lower lip as it extended in a child's pout.

"Don't call me 'Master'. It's strange to have someone so close be so formal."

"… I'm sorry, Friend: these times have not been kind to people like us. Now, what did you want to hear first?" There was sadness in her…

"Everything." He drawled automatically, rolling on the ground and staring at Ranim's glowing face as she hid a laugh with her hand.

"Alright: she's not as tall as Mistress Beset. I don't think anyone is. And she was very pale, with hair spun from the sun itself. Her eyes were strange and watery-like a shallow river on a cloudy day. They seemed to reflect everything, but held things just beneath the surface. She wore only light colours, and was accompanied by people I assume were her parents." Ranim sighed and laid her head on the knobbly trunk of an old fig tree, wrapping her arms around her body in a tight embrace, perhaps imagining those very arms belonged to someone else. And, of course Haruka knew who she was talking about. He also knew that woman would have no interest in a girl like Ramin. Let alone someone who served simply as a fountain for any pureblood passing by, even if her blood was practically ambrosial. Slavegirls and boys were not uncommon in the South, and Haruka found himself wavering to the encapsulated light in their strange, aromatic blood. So was the fate of an Arilite Qatir.

"Shizuka, right? You like her, right?" Ramin froze, the name of a person who took one look at her and sneered suspended on her lips. That rude, airy, graceful woman. She was elegant and beautiful and made Ramin's heart thump wildly as Kaname listened to its upbeat tempo.

"Shizuka… silence. That's what it was." They had first been acquainted in the hallway. Ramin had bowed obediently, gauzy shawl wrapped securely around her shoulders as she did not dare look directly at the visitors without permission. But something made her turn up. Just ever-so slightly: a small tilt of the head and eyes and a goddess came into view.

"As divine as the Great Lady Isis, herself." Kaname scoffed at hearing this,

"More like Kauket." Ranim swatted him playfully, and they wrestled in the dirt and grass, her gossamer robe becoming red and brown with the hard earth while he tried his best to tickle her and tossed about in the dust.

"Kaname, please stop!" She gasped out, laughing uproariously as he found the back of her knee beneath the light fabric. Her shawl was shed and her eyes grew teary as he moved up to her underarms and teased the skin with light touches. It made Haruka miss his childhood with Juuri.

"Alright, alright! May I tell you something to get you off of me?!"

"Ha ha! Try your best, young maid, for The Great Demon, Kaname, wishes to administer Death by Tickling!" He stopped for only a moment, waiting with an expectant smile as his fingers twitched dramatically in the air. Ranim wiped her eye and breathed for a moment, then pounced him quickly.

"The tables have turned, Great Demon! Ho-ho! Feel the wrath of the Goddess Ranim!" She playfully kissed him and he choked melodramatically as she showered him with he little pecks,

"No! No! Girl! Noooo!!" His tongue flopped out of his mouth and he rolled his eyes back until only the whites could be seen. Having stopped movement, Ranim lost interest in his motionless body, and stood, dusting herself off while he shot up and did the same. He sensed his father watching them and looked up to meet the man's smiling face,

"Kaname, I'd like you to come in now, please." The little boy nodded and hugged Ranim, running into the building as Haruka stepped back from the terrace. It couldn't be past two-they'd left Jabal when it was still light out. And yet he felt so tired. He cringed appropriately when he felt Beset nearby: apparently, opium wasn't even enough to get her down. Juuri had always been quite docile when it came to the drug, but she was more relaxed to begin with. To tell the truth, both he and she had numerous 'indulgences and pleasures' that they lived with. His was the drink that could curdle the stomachs of the Gods, hers was the drug that might have forced them to their sleep. Both were known to bask in the shadows of red lanterns in the poorer districts, but both knew they would not always have the other for release. Yes, aristocrats are good children. These were the godly counterparts that influenced their entire culture. Seems like a crash-course, doesn't it?

Kaname watched his father pour tea from the pot in his room, spying through a crack in the door as the cup lifted to the man's lips,

_CRASH BOOM!!_

The cup fell to the floor and smashed with Haruka's instantaneous jump. Cursing as the amber liquid stained his once-clean and white shirt, he shot for the door and Kaname ran behind a pillar. He was almost instantly out of view with his speed, and Kaname found he had to follow the trail of sounds to find him. Which wasn't very hard: Beset was making it _painfully_ clear where she was.

* * *

"How **DARE** you!!" The black-haired woman shouted as she flung herself at her husband. Amon tried to dodge her, a weak smile tugging at his lips while she tried to strangle him. The chain was clinking furiously on her wrist… He lost his cool and his laughter boomed loudly. Beset fisted his throat and put him through a wall or four, leaving Juuri and the newly arrived Haruka and Kaname stunned in the dust. Juuri began snickering as well, effects of the drug thin but there as she watched her dear friend pulverize the man. Haruka and Kaname were at a loss in the black marital comedy, and the father shooed his son from the violence with a shudder when he heard the two begin to 'go at it' in another sense. Juuri cooed and walked away shortly thereafter,

"Passion is fickle, my Dear Beset-good luck, Amon!" And each Kuran male felt a shiver dash up their spines.

"Father, why is Amon back so soon?" The man had been out on business, numerous assassination attempts by both humans _and_ his kind doing nothing to stop him. Haruka grunted, not having wanted his son to see their friends so 'close'.

"Amon does things quickly and efficiently. If they don't go along as planned he gets bored and looks for something else to do." Touching back on the man's uneasiness with his friends' show of affection-yes; Haruka could be a hypocrite. Nothing involving his relationship with Aurèle was taboo by any means. It was perfectly fine because he was perfectly in control. Even if three months of celibacy was going to kill him (Juuri couldn't very well do the things Aurèle could). "Kaname," He began awkwardly, "you do know not to tell Beset about Aurèle, don't you?" Kaname looked at him strangely for a moment,

"She'd kill you both if she ever found out." He said incredulously. His father laughed nervously, squeezing his son's hand and leading him to the salon. When the large doors opened to them, they found Juuri, Beset, Amon, and a few guests basking in the attentions of the slavegirls and boys. A sweet scent hit the two and Haruka instantly tried to have the doors shut. A couple inside caught sight of them and ordered two manservants to bring them forth.

"The full Kuran Set! How lucky we are, Mischa! Sit, Kurans, share the wealth of the Indian world!" Laughed a bright-eyed brunette. The scents in that room were enough to drive the child insane, and Kaname found himself almost entirely disoriented by simply standing in the doorway: water and reeds, sorrel, pomegranates, fir, and a perfume akin to that of the fig plantation, but deeper and stronger. And, of course, the heavy musk of naked skin and shameless sex.

"Haruka, my friend, you must try these! Nakita, stop hiding the pipe from everyone else!" Laughed the blue-eyed, toe-headed Mischa. His eyes sparkled with an unearthly whitish blue, his wife's large and dark and reflecting anything in her path with ethereal brilliance. Mischa pushed forward a slavegirl wrapped in a transparent gauzy dress. She bowed to Haruka and slit her wrist obediently. The scent of figs assaulted Kaname and he stuttered lamely,

"Ranim?" The girl spared him only a small glance, a light shock plastered in her eyes and otherwise stoic face. Meanwhile, Haruka was having a particularly hard time controlling himself… But what was the worst it could do? He'd have a couple of rounds from the pipe, guzzle down some fine Qatir wine and enjoy the rest of the night with his friends and wife, son pretty much forgotten as he dropped the small hand and reached for another.

Nakita, however intoxicated, always had a cold grip on sobriety, and fetched Kaname to sit him down between her and her husband. The little boy was bewildered, and even if his parents weren't in the best position to keep him from the worst of the smoking salon, she could try and keep him from putting his hand directly over the fire.

"Jaasir! Bring the pipe to our latest guest! I want to see if he can walk to the carriage by himself in the morning!" Commanded Beset. Her golden headdress was set perfect as always, long tan fingers delicately handing the eastern metalwork pipe to the barely-clothed man. The moment Haruka had it in hand, he took it to his lips and summoned a long, deep breath,

"Myyy, Juuri! Control your husband before he knocks his conscious to the gutter!" Mischa giggled as Amon roared with laughter. They all jeered as Haruka choked a little on the smoke, their bodies barely affected by the strong drug and their own sinister additions. By the middle of the session, not even a quarter of their deal had been smoked, and Beset was still stoic and domineering as she'd ever been, Amon rolling on the floor with the inability to stand, instead substituting the taxing movement with another grab for the pipe. Kaname sat beside Mischa still, Nakita having left for another draught from one of the slavegirls. The platinum blonde man was currently nestled between the pillows and a servant, the two males mussed up and battling lazily for sexual dominance. Mischa didn't seem to care either way, and let himself be pinned to the bed with harshly tanned thighs and strong, muscular arms.

Surprisingly, that wasn't what bothered Kaname:

What disturbed Kaname at the moment was only one thing: Haruka was kissing his mother instead of Aurèle. He didn't know why it seemed so strange; they were married and had a healthy enough relationship. But he felt angry with both of them for disrespecting that strange union the two men had, and Nakita sensed this anger as soon as the charring heat in the pot stood still with a constricted and dying breath. The smoke hadn't stopped, and nobody else had noticed, but Nakita immediately left the young Qatir and lifted the boy from the couch, cradling him carefully.

"I don't want to leave yet." He argued drowsily as one of the lamps died, too.

"Calm down, schizenschen, it's almost sunrise! Bedtime for little princes, yes?" Her long dark hair fell over his little body like a curtain, and he saw no more of the scene that shook him so deeply and strangely. How dare they? How dare they do that in front of him? How dare they do that when Aurèle was away and without a say in the matter?! The torches went out without so much as a flicker, settling an eerie darkness on the place that neither noticed in their states.

"Why did they do that?!" He demanded when the woman opened his door and began to take off his clothes. "Nakita, answer me!!" She drew his white nightgown over his head and tied the collar, "**Nakita**;** don't you ****dare**** ignore me**." Staring at the little boy, Nakita wasn't entirely sure what to say. It was easy to tell he wasn't yet sober, so she simply tucked him in and pushed back his hair,

"Your parents may do whatever they like, at their age. It may seem strange to you, having grown up with the man, but Haruka's little golden boy is the invader in this situation. Juuri comes first and foremost and, I'm sorry to say this, but 'Aurèle' is nothing more than an ex human," she hid her uneasiness concerning Haruka's gross infidelity, "and he will **never** be able to take the place of someone as great as your mother." Nakita was honest to the point of rudeness. She was usually smart in where she applied her skills, suavity and wit among their military-perfect rows. Nakita was almost always kind to her own, and abhorred unnecessary violence or action. However, she did not abhor violence in itself, nor extreme measures. Nakita was old and Kaname was not. Aurèle was a pretty showpiece Haruka took out when he felt he wanted to…? It didn't make sense. Kaname couldn't help it when the last candle in the wing blew out and all that fire he'd stolen suddenly focused on the hand touching him.

She screamed instantly, of course. With all that heat, her hand flamed brightly and then disappeared. She recoiled and waited with screams for her husband to apparate, his coming delayed only seconds and then the entire palace was in an uproar. Mischa and Amon were there, Beset taking Kaname from the room while the screeching woman's doting husband slowly coaxed bones from her body to expand and shape her new hand. She shrieked in agony, and Kaname could barely help the gleam that grew in his eye. What was there to feel guilty about? She'd insulted _Aurèle_, for Christ's sake: no amount of begging or pleading could force him to accept and forgive someone like that.

* * *

The screams stopped around daybreak, Ranim having drugged the woman almost to the point of no return. Juuri and Mischa had a quick, brisk talk while Haruka drank some tea to clear his head. After the brief conversation, Mischa snapped his fingers and disappeared with a distracted look on his face. Amon did the same, a slumbering Nakita curled in his arms. Kaname's unexpected display of mental firepower invoked Beset's non-parental pride, and she praised and spoiled the child as much as she could, getting him to practice with her, which his parents were grateful for, on some level. Kaname most definitely needed to learn control over things like that, but both of them had stones in their guts that echoed the boy's complete control in his actions. Kaname wouldn't intentionally… He wasn't that violent? There was no room in their plans for even the slight _chance_ that Kaname would somehow become the second generation of their brother. The boy was far too gentle about things, anyway. This was a fluke, and they would raise their eldest and only son to be the level-headed devotee he was destined to be.

Plus, with Beset crowding around and crooning over their child, it was hard to even get close without the woman scolding them for interrupting his lessons. Needless to say, Kaname was quite enjoying the lack of punishment, and basked in the encouragement Beset gave him. He was, after all, still a child. And, while the fire was extremely impressive, Kaname lacked much skill in most other fields. He was inexperienced and, therefore, not yet ready to take on real lessons and tasks. Even if he had already _**dominated**_ a move that had taken Amon years and years to learn when he was young. Unfortunately, it was the only action he could control: creating Arilite. Simple versions of Amon and Beset's highly detailed and life-given 'babies', but effective enough that, even in this early stage, he would never have the need to resort to physical means of defence. However, he had only perfected two of possible thousands: every Arilite is different, after all, whether in appearance or ability. These two were very basic embodiments of power, concerning a field that further perturbed his loving parents: war and espionage.

It was almost like an omen, watching their own peaceful child commit such violent acts. He was the future of their world: the next leader. What horrible things did he know would come? Because every child knows their destiny. Every child knows what they will face and what they are fated to do. They just don't understand. If the parents looked hard enough, maybe _they_ would. But Kaname could never explain to them what dreams haunted him at night, what had told him so illicitly to do what he had done to one of their closest allies. A war raged inside the head of this tiny body, pieces already dissociating from other pieces, destiny working its magic on his fragile mind and tearing apart the fabric of this little prince. He knew everything these dreams could tell him instantly, but was without the ability to let down his guard and express the knots in his heart and cold in his stomach.

He saw Aurèle more than often, the beautiful man's face blurring; colourless; pathless; ruthless in his indecisive form. Kaname knew if it wasn't the man, it was another like him. Another 'underling', as Beset had once said simply to anger his parents. Another man like Aurèle… Kaname wondered who it would be, and when he would meet them: someone he could give his entirety to in trust. Someone he could release himself in and also allow release unto him. He wondered briefly if they would fall in love…

The little boy shook his head and focused on a medium: a piece of scrap wood that Beset had brought for practice. It jittered a bit as he had it carve, parts reshaping and forming a small wooden doll. When that was done with, he focused even harder, forcing its limbs to creak and move, and finally giving it the irony of life: Arilite immortality. The figure was stiff for a moment, then looked to Kaname for orders. Kaname smiled: this one hadn't tried to kill him.

"Dance." He said slowly. The last one hadn't understood him and went insane, bashing and splintering its own head. He figured he had it down, now.

And, true to his word, the figure danced. Until Kaname's attention was drawn to a fly buzzing about the room, which the figurine immediately shot for, automatically eliminating anything that drew away its master's coveted attention. A real zealot. It attacked it, ripping with tiny fingers the delicate wings of the fly and smashing the little body into the table beneath it. Kaname was impressed by the savagery.

"_Pizgnya_: creatures without consciences or pity. You've learned how to make monsters, child. But can you give this little doll a face?" Kaname blinked at Beset as she entered the room, not exactly understanding how to accomplish that, and barely keeping the wooden figure from going at the woman.

"Why would I give a face to a monster?" He asked after trying to figure out the barrier of skills. Beset smiled,

"Ah, would you send someone without a face behind enemy lines and just expect them to blend in? No, Kuran-child! You must give it a mask! They have no manners or tongues, so you must give them etiquette and speech. The best place for something like this to hide is in plain sight-I'll help you with the first few." Kaname released the little Pizgnya and let Beset work her magic. Sure enough, shavings flew this way and that, bits of earth reforming and clouding around the small figure-wood becoming something that was not wood. When Kaname finally got the chance to look at it again, in its simple place stood a breathing, pink-cheeked… pygmy? It was small and clothed in regal European ware, looking about as if it knew absolutely nothing. Which was what Kaname thought, but it shocked him soon enough.

"If you would like to stare more, little boy, I'm afraid you'll have to pay." The doll was a beautiful little woman: a regular Thumbelina as she posed and inquired, snapping stiff at attention when Beset said sharply,

"This is your master, obey him!" She tried to tell Kaname how to transfer control, and it snapped quickly from her to him. The little doll abruptly lost her speech again, looking around dumbly with dull eyes. "Think about what you want her to do-she is your subordinate and must obey your every _**command**_-now command her, Kuran!" And so he imagined lullabies, his mother and Aurèle singing softly to him in the early hours…

The little woman began singing beautifully, acting as a lure to the songbirds as one unlucky male flew in to hear her song. He perched on the table and she instantaneously dove for Kaname's distraction. The boy managed to keep her from killing the bird, and she collapsed, a lifeless sack of skin and fabric while he worried over the small creature. All spells broken, Beset lost interest in the scene, but in a show of mercy, had Amon appear to treat the bird. She left them together to practice the useless magic. What good was healing artificially when, for a pureblood, it was more efficient just to let the wound seal itself?

But the doll was good. Very good. Kaname didn't even know the doll was actually his vision. If not edited to make it slightly more… female. The black-haired woman pondered for a moment, knowing of the boy's past with the ex-human, but not knowing why the mental picture he had had been so vague. Unless it had been a dream, which worried her more than any little songbird could.

* * *

An Intermission:

In the following passages, discussed are creatures that do not exist in our modern world. First mentioned are Gliders, the summarized description being a little vague. Later on, it will be revealed to you that these mindless creatures do, or did, indeed, have minds. Observe:

Gliders: shadows made to be the eyes of purebloods and aristocrats that cannot apparate, easily conceal themselves, or fly. When first revealed by their master's command, they appear as shadowy, great forms (think ink dripped into water) with simply drawn white faces similar to Noh masks. They have no visible eyes, see through their mouths, and are deaf to all voices but that of their master. Thoughtless creatures with an ironic history, they do not think for themselves unless asked to do so by their master or proxy-master. Can apparate instantly and have no visible personality.

Which is the encyclopaedia version, though not necessarily the best way to describe the history of these barely-living translucent Arilite. But this is not the time to discuss such matters as the history of something that 'never existed'.

* * *

"What do you think I should do?" Aurèle sipped his drink, watching the pacing and concerned Haruka through the Glider he'd sent over. When the brunette finally looked frantically into the mouth of his own Glider, his lover set down the chocolate drink with a sigh and spared himself another burn on his tongue.

"Haruka, train him. Parents always spend so much time worrying over what their children will do, unknowing of the fact that _they're_ at fault for not guiding the kids. God knows my dad messed up there," He mumbled. Haruka wasn't amused, but Aurèle continued, "Look, from what you tell me, Mistress Beset-"

"Don't you **dare** call her that in front of me. That is what **slaves** call her." Aurèle looked at him for a moment then sighed again,

"Do you want her to kill me? Anyway, she definitely knows what she's doing with Kaname. I'm not saying let her do whatever she wants-keep tabs and ask questions about his studies-but you can learn something from this woman. She has something to teach the both of you." Silence for a moment; Haruka was not willing to let Beset train and guide his son, especially not at such a tender and easily-influenced age. Kaname was born for peace, and he did **not** want Beset twisting that white future.

"… Fine. But I'm getting you down here if _anything_ happens." Aurèle looked at him incredulously, then stepped away from Haruka's view, revealing a massive study with imposing piles of paper.

"I'd rather be _anywhere_ than here. Do you know how tight they keep this place?! I'm doing work for **you**!! Now go spend some time with your son!" And the Glider on Aurèle's side vanished. Haruka was more than irritated that Aurèle had taken such a liberty, the anger almost crippling in that he knew the man was right, or at least partially so. Kaname had already done so much… maybe it really was time to get him a formal tutor? He certainly couldn't just go around throwing Pizgnya at people and laughing when their hands burned off.

But Haruka was not impressed in the slightest with his options, only begrudgingly resigning and ordering his Glider to speak what it thought of the matter as a last result.

"Well…?" Haruka drawled. The being was still, smoky body wavering in a light draft.

"… Master Kaname is to be controlled if your plans are to follow through, Sir." And a fucking servant had the guts to admit that to him. So Haruka ordered it again, this time to watch Aurèle, and it vanished to the man's place in Britain, taking nothing but the sole possession that was its shadow.

Hands fisted tightly, Haruka tried desperately not to swear out a storm, Beset's impression of them being bad enough, as it was. He settled for brutally mutilating the wall, anger seeping into the recently replastered surface along with the hurt from his friend and disapproval of his plans. But when all was said and done, the wall nothing but pile of dust between a drawing room and hallway, he put on his mask and straightened his shirt, stepping right through the white puffs as if they didn't exist.

* * *

Kaname had taken to using all sorts of materials to make his little monsters. He'd found that this sort of fruit made them more docile, this particular wood made them stronger and more human-like, and that a certain combination of clay, hair, and spit made something a little more… life-sized.

He smiled at his handiwork, patting his hands free of the dust and prideful as a little boy could be: this was a **masterpiece**. And he wanted badly to test it out on his father… But what to have it wear…?

"Pizgnya!" He ordered as it snapped to attention, blue eyes dull with obedience. Kaname made sure it looked him in the eye while he thought of all the things he wanted it to be, giddy when those blue, blue orbs brightened with an intense life that mocked that of the living. It's posture relaxed and it hummed with pleasure when a simple white shirt wrapped warmly around his cool, lifeless shoulders. He cooed when soft slippers held his feet, eyeing the miracle he was. Again, Kaname beamed with pride and surveyed what he had done.

"Master Kuran,"

"Kaname." Barked the boy, transferring the knowledge he thought the man would need. Soon enough, every single thing Kaname willed to give was duplicated in the 'man's mind. And, again, those eyes sparkled with a rare delight. Kaname heard the door open lazily as his father's scent drifted in before him. The little Kuran stole away and hoped the scent he'd given his doll would work on his beloved father. From what he saw next, it was close enough.

* * *

When Haruka opened the door to his son's room, there were many things he was expecting. Hopefully, Kaname would have been a good boy and put himself to bed. Secondly, he had thought the room to be devoid of any other living creatures **but** his son. He was right on both counts, but the cup in his hand immediately dropped to the floor as another kind of drug enamoured his senses. It disabled him and he felt his knees crumble while his hands reached weakly for support. Perhaps Kaname had made it a little too strong…?

Arms wrapped around the elder Kuran's stunned and shallow back. Kaname focused his entire mind on making that falsity run with warm blood, feeling like giggling when the mental block crumbled and he instantly sensed the calm beat of a working human heart.

"Haruka, are you alright?!" The doll said worriedly. Haruka looked around dazedly, slumped in the arms of the male figurine. Kaname was having a very hard time holding back his happiness with his skill.

"Au… Aurèle?" Whispered the incapacitated pureblood. 'Aurèle' smiled and hugged the sluggish body, dragging it over to Kaname's bed and laying it down like a true treasure. Haruka stared at him with wide, hazy eyes,

"What are you doing here?" He ventured quietly. Aurèle put a finger to his newly-warmed lips, leaning down and kissing the pinned man at a cherishing rate. Haruka's fists could barely clench. He felt so tired, but this heat was growing inside of him, you see and, well, Haruka was not an expert at hiding such occurrences. He groaned and shuffled beneath the man, arms weaving around an unsheathed neck to pull those lips in for a deeper, more satisfying adventure.

Kaname narrowly resisted clapping his hands in glee.

"Aurèle…?" Haruka ventured as the man slowly moved down his neck, flinching when the ever-sensitive column was teased by mocking teeth. Aurèle smiled against the skin, simply basking in the fact that all this was _real_. That he was corporeal and alive. That he had memories and a personality, and someone to cast all his desires onto. Kaname had given him a paradise he didn't want to waste.

He slipped his hands behind Haruka's bottom, easing the long shirt from the man's pants and bringing it up his chest. He gazed wonderingly at the skin, leaning down while his hands continued to draw away and his tongue flicked out to lap at a moonlike navel.

Arms caught by his shirt, Haruka struggled with the cloth, trying desperately not to rip it and have to answer to Beset on _"What exactly did you do last night, friend…?"_ Meanwhile, Aurèle was having a ball lapping at his stomach, the pale skin shuddering with a sheen of saliva and sweat.

"Easy," The real man hissed, body jumping and face contorted when Aurèle began to grate his chest with polished nails. And, for some reason, at that moment, Kaname's heart flinched. He thought it did: that's what it felt like. Yeah; his heart had flinched. He grabbed his little chest with wonder and uneasiness, not sure what to think. Then Haruka moaned and it happened again. It was so odd, the feeling his father was causing him. At his age, Kaname didn't understand it, but kept playing with his doll and hoping his father would make more noises, though he wasn't sure why his body liked it so much.

Haruka gripped at Aurèle's sides, pulling him a little closer in as the man travelled further down his body. Something about his movements-the stiffness-was off-setting, but the pureblood forgot it quickly enough, shoving his fist into his mouth to stop a scream and Beset's wrath. Aurèle slid down his belt, having made quick work in loosening his own, and began focusing on what laid beneath this last frontier of fabric. Having Haruka Kuran, great descendant of the vampiric royal family mewling and twisting under you was gratifying, but that fabricated mind was looking for a little something… else.

_NOW_ Haruka screamed. Hard. Something burst inside Kaname at that moment, and it flooded him with a very warm feeling. His chest felt light and his face felt hot. Along with all the 'lower workings', so to say. He wanted to hear more-so much more-from his beautiful father. He wanted the man to keep screaming in pleasure and agony. So he had his doll work faster and more harshly, ripping off his father's clothes until the man was naked and still twisting, turning, moaning on the bed.

"Get your fingers ready," Aurèle said lowly. Haruka obeyed and closed his eyes, fingers delving into his mouth as he only just lightly coated them. Because he naturally liked sex to be just a _little_ rough. However, he had no idea what it felt to be fucked by a Pizgnya, much less the damage it could do when they looked like someone so close to you. Kaname watched heatedly and silently as Haruka's fingers slowly made the journey down his neck, chest, and hip, coming below his erection and dipping into that narrow, sensitive spot. Useless seduction on a lustful, violent creature, but the effect on Kaname was stupendous. For, at that moment, Kaname understood a little more about what it was like to be male.

Haruka dipped in another, body moving with the motions in that small place, rocking under Aurèle as the still-clothed, wild-eyed man stared at him with something a little foreign: Kaname was getting impatient.

Aurèle grabbed Haruka's hands, thrusting them above his head and those nails grazed a very, _very_ tender spot. The pureblood winced and stared at his partner in confusion,

"Aurèle?" The black-haired man looked maniacal: grinding Haruka's body into the mattress like a madman and eyes sparkling with a viciousness the vampire had not expected. "Aurè-eh-AH-" And the darker man plunged in without a moment's notice. He immediately started pushing, pushing, pushing, the look on Haruka's face pained as he struggled against his mate, desperate not to hurt him but very, very willing to resort to violence if called to duty.

"_AURELE_!!" He shrieked, shocked and disgusted to find he was crying. Kaname shuddered, thinking only of the sounds he could have his father make when he heard a very large _crash_. Then silence.

"…Aurèle?" Asked a quivering voice. Kaname opened his eyes and saw his father rising with trouble and pain, legs splayed out, body positively covered in fluids. His voice was wavering and he barely breathed. Where the Pizgnya had been now lay a pile of dirt and dust. Haruka's mouth opened in shock, tears track his cheeks like hikers returning from a trip. It was then that he scented his son.

"Kaname?" He said, voice not yet over his stun. "**Kaname**." He repeated, urging his voice not to crack. When the boy came down from his hiding place, Haruka froze in all his naked glory. Kaname watched him, concealing his hunger extremely well for his age. Not yet able to truly process what his son had done, Haruka remained stationary, eyes blank as he adjusted to the situation.

"Did you do this…?" He asked, voice growing hard as his eyes grew a dead chill. Kaname shuddered, remembering the man that had moaned so attractively and wondering where he'd gone. He simply shook his head, _"Yes, Father"_ and looked on as Haruka's hands clenched the sheets and trembled. He was still locked on that gorgeous body. No scars, mars, or imperfections visible. It was when the man finally spoke again that Kaname snapped out of his daze.

"Kaname," His tone was faltering, but he gained confidence with every sentence. "Why did you do this…?" And, figuring it would quickest to admit to his crimes honestly and shortly, Kaname answered,

"I knew you missed Aurèle." Which was the original reason. He wouldn't have gone so far if it hadn't been for the second one, but he didn't feel it appropriate to put that up in the air. Haruka assessed him, looking him straight in the eye and thinking it all this was real. 'Aurèle' lay at his feet, and he drew his limbs up tightly, feeling very vexed and somewhat worried. He needed the _real thing_ to vent.

"Kaname," He finally said, sternly, "I never want you to do this again, do you understand?" The dust shifted a little in Kaname's defiance: he'd only tried to help out, hadn't he?! Haruka put him through the pillar to show how serious he was. Blinking, his son sat up in the rubble.

"I was only trying to help-"

"**I don't care what you were **_**trying to do**_!!" The older male started in on him. "You put Aurèle and our family in danger by doing this, Kaname! Do you know what Beset would do if she found an ex human acting like this in her home?!" Kaname was becoming frightened, now. Haruka let out a wheezy, decrepit laugh, "She wouldn't _care_ if her superiors ordered her not to-she'd find wherever he was and kill him!!" His eyes were wetter, now. He looked at his son frantically, searching for more of an explanation. When he found something else, he froze.

Kaname knew what he was looking at, but saw no good in trying to hide it. Haruka was wide-eyed, then his lids covered the brown orbs. He rubbed at his head with a tired, shaking hand, growing angrier when he felt sticky precum smearing his hair.

"Kaname, do not come near me for the rest of the night." He paused, a bit of a blank in his mind that Kaname took as shock to the situation. "And if you _**ever**_ do this again, I swear your punishment will have you in the basement for _years_." And then he waved the boy away. Kaname kept as much dignity as he could and walked away at a normal pace, stepping gingerly over the stones as if nothing at all had happened. He wasn't even truthfully concerned about his upcoming punishment. Seeing his father like that was… exhilarating.

* * *

"Haruka? Pipe up, already, I've got work… to… do." Aurèle stared hard at the picture of his friend: the messy hair and hidden eyes, naked, shining body and, of course, the destruction behind him. Haruka had completely destroyed almost an entire wing of the Nasserian mansion.

"Haruka, what the Hell happened?!" Aurèle's full attention was now focused on the man in the picture, and he waited anxiously for that single, quiet reply,

"We'll be home in about a week. Have some money transferred over so we can cover the damages." Aurèle's mouth hung open,

"Wait-what?! You mean, you did that? Did Juuri? Kaname?!" Haruka looked blindly into the image of the fretting brunette, a calm keeping him down at the sight of the man. "Haruka, answer me! What the Hell happened?!" Beset was violent, but she would **never** go so far: Haruka looked _terrible_. But still, the tired, dirty man smiled,

"We missed you, Aurèle. I promise we'll get home on time." Infuriated with the man's short responses, Aurèle asked one final question, only it was more of a discontented sigh;

"Just tell me this: is anything down there going to affect us up here?" Haruka was quiet for a moment, the calm more of a dreary, silent sorrow,

"Yes, Aurèle. See you in a week."

Now: anyone want to give some constructive criticism on how frickin' terrible my erratic update times are? :D


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